I was quite happily surprised to read this article, not only because I am completely enamoured of Chicago and wouldn't miss an opportunity to learn more about it, but also because I had only two days previous been talking with my friend Luke about his recent trip there.

He was visiting a friend and touring the city and its many museums. He said he had quite enjoyed his time there, but was a bit surprised at just how segregated the city was. And I was a bit surprised at his surprise. I was under the impression that segregation is still everywhere. It may no longer be planned and enforced the way it once was, but it persists. Economic inequality leads to social inequality (I know I'm oversimplifying here. I don't claim to be an expert on any topic).

You can see it clear as day even in a city as small as Providence (roughly 176,000 people spread over 18.5 square miles). I live right on the line of demarcation between the east side's affluent, mostly white neighborhood on the top of the hill and its low-income, mostly black neighborhood on the bottom. And not only are the lines clearly drawn, but they are also moving.

The affluent neighborhoods are spilling over into the impoverished ones in the name of "redevelopment." They aren't looking to enrich or diversify their community. They are "pioneering." Every mill still standing is being renovated and repurposed for the benefit of the rich while waiting lists for the dwindling numbers of affordable housing units grow ever longer. The relatively new whole foods market's closest potential customers are those that live in the projects or in the elderly complex.

And unlike Biss' experience of having a group of boys implore her to not be afraid of them, I have been lead to believe that at least some of the people living on the hill do in fact want people like me to be afraid of them, likely because they are threatened. They don't want to be pushed out of their homes. I've been called names, threatened, have had my windows shot at with beebee guns, bottle rockets and firecrackers pushed through my front door's mail slot. all minor events, sure, but certainly not a welcoming party. But I can't say I blame them.

I'm doubtful that Providence — or any other city in the country — will soon become both more diverse and less segregated. The wide-scale change necessary for that to occur just isn't anywhere on the horizon.

4 Comments:

  1. Test Blogger said...
    I really must start reading this rag. Providence may be the worst example in the north of intentional architectural segregation (i just made that up). The thing that struck me in Chicago is that racial groups are staying segregated even across economic disparities.
    Check out http://www.censusscope.org/segregation.html for more data related to segregation.
    Test Blogger said...
    According to that data, Providence ranks 7th most segregated metro area, while Chicago ranks 16th. I guess I don't notice it as much in Providence because most people I know live in low-income neighborhoods...
    Seedy B said...
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    Seedy B said...
    As small as we are, we have a lot to overcome, and all of that is now being exponentially exacerbated by the state's dismal budget. We seem to be digging ourself into a hole so deep we may just blink out of existence. Scary indeed.

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